96 Accord clutch slips

[Pete]

I'm a first-time visitor. I have a 96 Accord LX with 169,000 miles. 5 months and 4000 miles ago the clutch was slipping and I paid $700 to have a new clutch pack kit put in. I’ve driven sticks all my life but never worked on a clutch myself. A month ago I again felt the clutch slipping a few times after it had been engaged in second and third gears and took it back to the mechanic. His response was to bleed the hydraulic line.

Since then I’ve babied it and it did not slip. Then my son came back from school and took it out and did not baby it and said it slipped. Then today I was getting on the freeway and had to accelerate hard after engaging it in third gear and it slipped on me. It was in third, my foot was off the clutch and I heard a billowing over-revving from the motor and saw the tach spike unnaturally as I hit the gas. After that I experimented with hard acceleration and it slipped again sporadically. Sometimes there’s no slippage during acceleration and sometimes there is, in second, third and fourth. There's been zero free-play since the new clutch was put in.

Now I’m halfway through the warranty and want to get this resolved. A car mechanic friend just listened to this story and says that one of the following isn’t releasing fully: master cylinder, release bearing, or slave cylinder. He recommended asking specialists like you. Any suggestions about what needs to be done?
Pete

[AHTOXA]

I don't believe you have an issue of "not releasing" as you mentioned. In that case your symptoms would have been different - you would be grinding gears and what not. The clutch is engaged until you press down on the pedal so it should stay engaged.

I do not believe there is an issue with the hydraulics. Ruling out a defective/really crappy clutch you may have some contamination of the clutch friction material - perhaps oil - or the for some reason there isn't sufficient force clamping the clutch disk.

Does it slip every time you get on it in the same gear or is to more sporadic?

[LHOswald]

does your clutch pedal have the same weight as after you got the new one installed? if so, its possible that he didn't replace the diaphragm spring and that was what was causing the slipping in the first place. if theres not enough clamping force on the clutch disk, its going to slip. make sure he did the whole thing right, otherwise your going to be paying for him to rip the whole thing apart again and do it the right way.

[Pete]

does your clutch pedal have the same weight as after you got the new one installed? if so, its possible that he didn't replace the diaphragm spring and that was what was causing the slipping in the first place. if theres not enough clamping force on the clutch disk, its going to slip. make sure he did the whole thing right, otherwise your going to be paying for him to rip the whole thing apart again and do it the right way.

LHOswald – I’m not sure about clutch pedal weight. I’ll ask the guy.
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I don't believe you have an issue of "not releasing" as you mentioned. In that case your symptoms would have been different - you would be grinding gears and what not. The clutch is engaged until you press down on the pedal so it should stay engaged.

I do not believe there is an issue with the hydraulics. Ruling out a defective/really crappy clutch you may have some contamination of the clutch friction material - perhaps oil - or the for some reason there isn't sufficient force clamping the clutch disk.

Does it slip every time you get on it in the same gear or is to more sporadic?

AHTOXA – It happens sporadically. It tends to happen at higher speeds when I accelerate hard in 3rd or 4th gear.

[AHTOXA]

So it doesn't happen every time you accelerate hard in 3rd or 4th, right?

[Pete]

So it doesn't happen every time you accelerate hard in 3rd or 4th, right?

No it doesn't happen every time. I just warmed it up and tried it out on the freeway. I accelerated hard repeatedly on entrance ramps and it did fine. I'm amazed.

[theholycow]

LHOswald – I’m not sure about clutch pedal weight. I’ll ask the guy.

I think by "weight" he meant how hard it is to press the clutch pedal. Does it require more or less force than before, or exactly the same?

[RITmusic2k]

A glazed clutch can act that way temporarily; not pointing any fingers here, but if your son accidentally botched a shift and spun the crap out of her before releasing the pedal completely, the friction surface can be compromised until it wears through the glazed portion. This would explain why it started slipping again, and continued to slip, and has since corrected itself.

I've done the same thing myself before...

EDIT: If that's the case, you may have lost a couple thousand miles of service life out of that clutch, but once it sorts itself out again it should be as good as new.

[LHOswald]

i've experienced glazed clutches before and its something from hell. the best way to cure a glazed clutch is to drive normally. this should only take about a day of driving without any hard launches or anything and it should tear all the glazed portion off the clutch disk.

[Pete]

Here are a couple more clues. This afternoon after about 45 minutes of driving it started slipping each time I went into 2nd gear while accelerating. Each time as it slipped the electric/battery light on the dash flickered on for an instant. Could oil be leaking into the clutch and as the car is driven oil works its way into the clutch so it only starts to slip after the length of time (say 45 minutes) it took for the oil to get in? What else could be happening?
Pete

[Pete]

I wrote the last message before I noticed you guys had posted more ideas.

LHOswald - clutch pedal pressure/weight feels the same

RITmusic2k - Glazed clutch- Yeah, he could have missed a shift but on that day he drove it about 45 minutes before the slipping started on him. Today I didn't miss any shifts before it started slipping on me after 45 minutes. Today I was accelerating harder than usual to test the clutch but it was nothing extreme.

Could the oil or fluid be drying/evaporating so the clutch works OK after it has sat for a while or overnight?

Most of the time I drive it to and from work which is barely 20 minutes. That way the problem could stay hidden for awhile.
Pete

[Pete]

Do you guys know if the free play on the hydraulic clutch of the 96 Accord can be adjusted? Two mechanics, including the guy who did my clutch said no. But I just found a forum where a guy asked about free play adjustment for a 96 Accord LX (hondaaccordforum.com) Here's the answer they gave.

Shown in the picture below,there are 2 nuts used to adjust the pedal height.To adjust the clutch pedal height, loosen the locknut on the clutch switch until it no longer touches the pedal. Then loosen the locknut on the clutch pushrod. Turn the pushrod to adjust pedal height then tighten the locknut. Turn the switch until it contacts the pedal arm, then turn it an additional 3/4 turn. Tighten the lock nut.

You should also pay close attention to the clutch free play,to my knowledge it should be around 10mm of free play,so have your ruler ready.

My clutch pedal has no free play. It engages at the very top of the travel. Maybe the clutch is getting hotter over time due to not engaging due to limited pedal range and it finally starts slipping. Maybe the key is to give it some free play.

[padauk_dust]

My clutch pedal has no free play. It engages at the very top of the travel. Maybe the clutch is getting hotter over time due to not engaging due to limited pedal range and it finally starts slipping. Maybe the key is to give it some free play.

That could certainly be the issue; at least partially.
The pedal should have half an inch or so of free play.

[LHOswald]

My clutch pedal has no free play. It engages at the very top of the travel. Maybe the clutch is getting hotter over time due to not engaging due to limited pedal range and it finally starts slipping. Maybe the key is to give it some free play.

wait your clutch engages at the top of its pedal travel? like as in you've almost let the clutch all the way out and it starts grabbing? are you sure he even replaced the friggin clutch disk? one annoying thing about new clutches is breaking them in. normal clutches engage around 3\4 down. usually a brand new one engages right off the floor. after a thousand miles or so it takes all the loose shit on the top off and the engagement point will sit around 3\4 for awhile. if it engages at the top its either a hydraulic problem, your clutch disk was never replaced or your throwout bearing is somehow bred with down syndrome. also if the clutch strength is about the same, chances are the diaphragm spring wasn't replaced. its harder to notice with a hydraulic clutch vs. a cable clutch, (cable clutch you would know its alot stiffer) but you should still notice an increase in stiffness. a normal clutch job consists of clutch disk, pressure plate, throwout bearing, diaphragm spring.

also it is possible the engine is pissing oil into the bellhousing. rare, but possible. more likely the front main seal of your transmission is starting to go (if this is the problem at all) and gear lube is getting on the clutch disk. check both engine oil and gear lube levels and see if they are within the norm.

also use the quote button on the bottom right of peoples posts to quote them instead of copy and pasting. not being a dick, just letting you know how to use it. you'll get used to the site in time

[Bawked]

my clutch used to engage high, so i adjusted the push rod... now it engages lower.